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Wednesday, Nov. 04, 2009

WRLT gets in holiday spirit with ‘Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol’

Christmas season starts this week at Warner Robins Little Theatre with a twist on an old favorite.

The theater will perform “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol,” written by Tom Mula and directed by Fred Hardin, starting Friday. The story is a version of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” told by Marley’s ghost.

“I like to kick off the Christmas season,” said Hardin, who is directing his 30th production.

First written as a one-man play, in 1995 Adams Media published Mula’s novel “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol,” and it became a Chicago Tribune best seller.

The audio version has been broadcast nationwide on NPR for seven seasons and received an INDI Award for Spoken Word from the Association for Independent Music, according to Mula’s official Web site.

The cast consists of four actors who play 18 different roles. Cast members shift from narrators to characters back to narrators, with a change of accent, movement or sound effect.

“It’s storytelling at its finest,” Hardin said.

The sound effects, Hardin said, are the original ones that were used for the one-man play.

Alexander Raines, who plays Marley and a few other characters, said he planned on taking time off but always wanted to work with Hardin.

“It’s my first time working with Fred,” Raines said. “I haven’t done anything like this before.”

Whitney Sheffield, who plays a bogle for most of the play, said “A Christmas Carol” is her favorite book. A bogle is an obnoxious spirit that is not in the original story, but helps move it along, Hardin said.

“I’ve seen all the versions of the movies,” Sheffield said.

“I like the way (this play) blends with the story. It’s clever and original.”

Scrooge is played by David Kelley, who came to the audition just to watch.

“It’s such a great story. I just had to do it,” Kelley said.

The fourth actor is Ben Daniel, who plays eight different characters, including a record keeper, Bob Cratchit and death, to name a few.

Tim McIntyre does the sound for the show. He has his work cut out for him, with about 70 sound cues, which were originally on four playback machines that have been combined onto two CDs.

Hardin said he attended a few productions of the play to come up with the set idea. The characters dress in all black, and the set is also in black, so as not to distract from the storytelling.

The sentiment that is echoed over and over from the cast and director is about the play’s uniqueness.

“It’s new and different,” Hardin said.

To contact writer Angela Woolen, call 923-5650.

If you go What: “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol” When: 8 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Nov. 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21; 2:30 p.m. Nov. 15 Where: Warner Robins Little Theatre, 502 S. Pleasant Hill Road, Warner Robins Cost: $15/adults; $12/seniors, military, students; $10/groups of 10+ More information: 929-4579